i-banking: MBA w/out prior finance experience

I'm going to start b-school in sept. but I have no finance experience (e.g., analyst with an i-bank).

I'm guessing that the likelihood of getting an internship (in the summer before 2nd year) with an i-bank is quite low (assuming that I am competing with MBA students who've had analyst positions out of undergrad).

what can I do to make up for the lack of experience?

academics? ecs?

 

If you're going to a top 10 MBA program (Harvard, Wharton, Stanford, etc) then you won't have any problem. Otherwise you won't be going into Investment banking anyway, except at a backwater boutique.

 
Hip2Status:
If you're going to a top 10 MBA program (Harvard, Wharton, Stanford, etc) then you won't have any problem. Otherwise you won't be going into Investment banking anyway, except at a backwater boutique.

you are a dumbshit. i know of 10 people at Rice MBA (ranked in the 40's) going into summer positions in the Houston office.

you might not get NYC

 

thanks for the replies so far...

I'm a canadian student -> rotman (JD/MBA - JD 1st year, MBA 2nd year)

I guess undergrad in math/stats/finance isn't really going to help is it?

 

Byran, try not to get emotional about a message board. IBankingOasis.com is about objective advice, not emotional outbursts. You are right, many middle market banks like SunTrust, etc will hire people from Rice for their Houston office.

FYI, the only business school in Canada afforded respect is the Ivey School of Business...

 
Hip2Status:
Byran, try not to get emotional about a message board. IBankingOasis.com is about objective advice, not emotional outbursts. You are right, many middle market banks like SunTrust, etc will hire people from Rice for their Houston office.

FYI, the only business school in Canada afforded respect is the Ivey School of Business...

not being emotional, just please don't throw out huge generalizations on this board. i am a big believer in qualification of one's advice. your advice how i interpreted it was "you won't have any luck anyway if you're not top 10"... when in fact, there are tons of routes to get a job as an investment banker. i think that as a whole people pigeon-hole themself into NYC analyst or NYC associate very much unnecessarily. anyway, apologies for being emotional, :) i'm on my man period i guess.

 

"FYI, the only business school in Canada afforded respect is the Ivey School of Business..."

look, I've been throught this crap before. I didn't come here to play a pissing contest (i.e., my schools's better than yours).

I just wanted to know what I have to do while in b-school to improve the odds of getting an associate position after b-school or an i-banking position while in b-school.

If anyone has any info on that, I'd appreciate if you'd share.

 

Del Monte

I have no control over a particular school's prestige. Its just a fact that at least in the US, the only Canadian business school that people respect is the Ivey School. What you can do to improve your chances is do research to find middle market Canadian i-banks that don't limit themselves to hiring from the top.

 

folks: lets drop this MBA ranking schtick, I think we are all a bit more mature than that.

Why am I doing the JD/MBA? Because I have no work experience and am betting that going this route will pay off more (in the long run) than if I had worked as an analyst in a consulting firm.

I don't really care for either profession, I just want the money. As much of it as possible.

So let me ask again: as a b-school student applying for summer positions at an i-bank, what do I need to be competitive? Are all associates at i-banks former analysts (that worked there before going for the MBA)?

 
del_monte:
So let me ask again: as a b-school student applying for summer positions at an i-bank, what do I need to be competitive?

look at the banks websites, they usually have a good description of what qualifications they require.

 

You have an advantage with ib experience and an mba, but the overwhelming majority of applicants out of b-school are not former bankers. That's the whole point of going to b-school for a lot of people--to change careers. Most former bankers want to go into a buyside job.

 

Networking is key. Attend every event and remeber that each interaction with a banker is an interview so always bring your A-game. If you're not getting enuf help from your B-school, try your undergrad college - there's usually some good guys there that get bugged a whole lot less than the b-school alumni.

 

at i-banks are former analysts....most analysts end up exiting ibanking after 2 years. They'll go to PE/HF, corp. development, something totally outside of finance, law school, etc. The only reason associates choose to do IBanking is b/c they can't get the "coveted" finance jobs since those always go to former analysts and banking is the only way to break into the industry.

BTW, if you join law firm or bank just for the money, you'll hate it and quit after a few years. There has to be passion in order to deal with the grueling hours.

 

Yes you would have a chance, however, with your accounting background I also think you'd have a good shot at analyst positions that come up throughout the year. If you're sure on IB down the road then it's something you might want to think about.

 

I have been considering getting my masters in finance from Baruch part time while working, I know Baruch isnt one of the top msf programs but it is the most convenient since it is so close to my job. Would the 2 years working as an Audior plus the msf put in me in a good position for getting a job as analyst at an IB in NYC.

 
shorttheworld:
i love kenny powers

in all seriousness best o f luck. what is the school u got your mba from?

The University of Tampa. It's AACSB accredited and is recognized as a good school in the southeast. But, I know people don't really care once you start trying to get into an industry that is dominated by Ivy League and comparable schools. I started my undergrad at the University of Rochester, a consistent top-40 ranked school. I think I'd garner a little bit more interest if I finished there, or even if I went back to get my MBA from there; I declined though to play pro baseball.

 
happypantsmcgee:
use the SHIT out of playing pro baseball. They love former athletes on the street.

I'm trying to play that up every way I can. My subject lines of emails start "Former professional athlete..." It's in my objective too. I know that is my "hook" and makes me unique, and everyone is always saying there are bankers and finance people out there that love athletes, I just need to find out how to find these people.

 

I would look into S&T, they love athletes/war stories.

Perhaps let us see your resume...i would suggest getting rid of the "objective".

Have you thought of just not mentioning the MBA? Frankly, just having an MBA doesn't carry much weight...you get one for the networking, access, etc. Just say you were playing baseball for the interim, you have great undergrad grades, a finance degree, etc....no reason you shouldnt be able to land an analyst gig. It's that mba holding you back. Your net is probably cast at a lot of places but going forward, I'd leave it off.

 
Cartwright:
I would look into S&T, they love athletes/war stories.

Perhaps let us see your resume...i would suggest getting rid of the "objective".

Have you thought of just not mentioning the MBA? Frankly, just having an MBA doesn't carry much weight...you get one for the networking, access, etc. Just say you were playing baseball for the interim, you have great undergrad grades, a finance degree, etc....no reason you shouldnt be able to land an analyst gig. It's that mba holding you back. Your net is probably cast at a lot of places but going forward, I'd leave it off.

I have considered leaving the MBA off, but then I worried about having to explain what I did during the offseasons (assuming I'd run into a banker at some point in any bank who would be sports savvy enough to realize we have a 5 month off-season).

The objective I don't really care either way about--some bankers have given me feedback to leave it because it's my "hook" and others have said it's unnecessary.

 
[Comment removed by mod team]
 
whateverittakes:
At best, you have a shot at a regional bank in the Southeast. I've honestly never heard of U of Tampa and the school's lack of a reputation is not doing you any favors.

I agree with an above poster who told you to get rid of the "objective" field. Get rid of it.

Also, don't EVER defend the validity of your U of Tampa MBA by saying that the U of Tampa is "AACSB accredited." Even absolute shit-hole schools have the accreditation. Pulling that line on bankers will make you appear clueless and unaware.

Nowhere in these resumes/cover letters have I ever listed that is is accredited--I don't try to defend the school with that. Haha, I'm not even going to go there. I just focus on what I accomplished while there, and try to drop in my attendance at the University of Rochester and that I turned down acceptance into their B-School when I have the chance--just to show that I had the chance, but pursued a dream instead.

Thank you for the comments, I appreciate it.

 
Best Response

Hey,

Banks are full of athletes (college and professional). It may take some homework, but I would go through the banks and try to identify the guys that played sports either in college or professionally and email them directly.

Here's what I'm talking about:

If you wanted to apply to Baird, check out the bios of their Partners. Joe Pellegini played for the Jets and Falcons. Try to get his email and contact him directly (tailor your story to be about how you're trying to transition from sports to finance).

http://www.rwbaird.com/ci/investment-banking/industries-focus/team-bios…

If you wanted to apply to a PE firm, you can see that HKW in Indianapolis has two former professional athletes (Chairman was a football player and a Partner was a hockey player):

www.hkwinc.com

Given your background, I think it's worth doing the little bit of research to figure out where you can get an in. When I used to work in banking, I used to work with a guy who went from professional baseball straight to a middle-market PE firm. Send me a note at my WSO email, and I can give you an introduction. I'm sure he'd be happy to give you some pointers.

What school did you transfer from?

 

Whats up man I too went to University of Tampa for MS in Finance, transferred from the MS Program at UMich and am trying to break into investment banking. I wouldn't be critical of UT bro, it's not a well known school but the level of education here is very good (better than UMich in my opinion).

I like to use that as a talking point in an interview. Say something like its not a well known school so I have everything to prove and will work twice as hard as anyone else etc... a lot of boutique banks love intelligent grads from non-target schools because of this. Its also important to say that you'll take the Pepsi Challenge with any of those Ivy League kids any day with your little inexpensive UT Degree and that they wouldn't even be able to tell the difference.

Just some of my thoughts, of course what do I know I haven't broken in yet.

 

Aut consequatur sit et est. Esse beatae dolores perferendis ipsa laboriosam tenetur qui. Dolores voluptate quia voluptate sint voluptatem eum nam.

 

A ut ipsam nisi ea veritatis ullam. In deleniti dolores minus est omnis eius ratione sed. Ea sunt eum laboriosam itaque vel minima.

Ab sit debitis est dolorem quo et. In culpa alias et dignissimos. Sit ad deserunt reiciendis facilis. Dignissimos enim sed accusamus aliquam quam odit. Debitis eligendi praesentium facilis.

Perspiciatis voluptatem eius veritatis et eaque tenetur facilis. Illo excepturi dolor laborum. Voluptatibus rem necessitatibus accusamus. Nam voluptatem repellat esse aspernatur.

Dolorem non incidunt itaque consequatur et rem quibusdam quis. Temporibus fuga dolorum maiores labore. Praesentium voluptas ut veritatis. Expedita et itaque sit autem.

Career Advancement Opportunities

March 2024 Investment Banking

  • Jefferies & Company 02 99.4%
  • Goldman Sachs 19 98.8%
  • Harris Williams & Co. (++) 98.3%
  • Lazard Freres 02 97.7%
  • JPMorgan Chase 03 97.1%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

March 2024 Investment Banking

  • Harris Williams & Co. 18 99.4%
  • JPMorgan Chase 10 98.8%
  • Lazard Freres 05 98.3%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.7%
  • William Blair 03 97.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

March 2024 Investment Banking

  • Lazard Freres 01 99.4%
  • Jefferies & Company 02 98.8%
  • Goldman Sachs 17 98.3%
  • Moelis & Company 07 97.7%
  • JPMorgan Chase 05 97.1%

Total Avg Compensation

March 2024 Investment Banking

  • Director/MD (5) $648
  • Vice President (19) $385
  • Associates (86) $261
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (13) $181
  • Intern/Summer Associate (33) $170
  • 2nd Year Analyst (66) $168
  • 1st Year Analyst (202) $159
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (144) $101
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

1
redever's picture
redever
99.2
2
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
3
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
99.0
4
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
5
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
6
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
7
kanon's picture
kanon
98.9
8
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
9
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
10
Jamoldo's picture
Jamoldo
98.8
success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”